Shopping channel turns spotlight on regional expansion

It plans to expand its multi-channel marketing business to the Asean+3 and Asean+6 markets to cash in on the coming Asean Economic Community (AEC) and associated free-trade agreements, which will lead to a better flow of products and human resources within Southeast Asia and other major trading partners in Asia, Australia and New Zealand.
Asean+3 comprises the 10-member regional grouping plus China, Japan and South Korea, while Asean+6 also includes India, Australia and New Zealand.
Chief executive officer Songpol Shanmartkit said yesterday that the company would list on the Market for Alternative Investment (MAI) this year in a move that would promote the transparency of its auditing system and credibility with a view to expanding its TV shopping and other multi-channel business abroad.
“We plan to make an initial public offering by the second quarter of the year by selling nearly 20 per cent of our company, or about 28.5 million shares. We will increase our registered capital from the current Bt159 million to Bt188 million before listing on the MAI,” he said.
He said TV Direct, which distributes more than 2,000 product stock-keeping units, wants to become a regional player in TV shopping and multi-channel marketing to cash in on the AEC’s implementation in 2015, as well as the opening up of Burma.
“We conducted a feasibility study on expanding our business in Burma over the past two years. Free-trade schemes such as the AEC will encourage all members of Asean to open their countries up to foreign direct investment,” he added.
Songpol said the company had been exporting its TV-shopping products to some Indochinese markets since 2006.
However, it only began seriously penetrating countries such as Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and Malaysia in 2008 via the opening of branch offices to conduct local multi-channel marketing. In some markets such as Laos, the company expects to have its own TV channel to conduct home shopping business.
“We expect about 3-4 per cent of our sales revenue this year will come from Indochina,” the CEO said.
He added that TV Direct would expand its business within Asean next year, and then to Asean+3 markets in 2014 and Asean+6 in 2015.
“We have been able to achieve double-digit growth annually over the past five years. About 46 per cent of our sales revenue is from TV shopping business, while another 24 per cent comes from our call centre, 5 per cent from our sales catalogue and other printed media channels, and about 10 per cent from retail,” he said.
The company achieved sales of about Bt1.4 billion in the first nine months of last year, up 33.6 per cent over the same period in 2010.
TV Direct plans to launch its Sarah Direct single-level direct-selling business into the Thai market officially by midyear, Songpol said.